Civil Servant Cultivates New Career at Hole Park

A former civil servant from Kent, who swapped a computer keyboard for garden tools to help overcome severe postnatal anxiety, is about to see her dreams come true. Not one but two of her first garden designs are going on show to the public this Summer, one of them at Gardeners' World Live in June (12-15 June 2025).

Jane Eastwood, a mum of two from Hawkhurst, had dreamed of becoming a garden designer while working as a copywriter for Gov.uk. After suffering postnatal anxiety twice in five years, including during the pandemic, she decided to quit her London-based job and retrain in horticulture.

After attending a 'design your garden' workshop at Hole Park, near Cranbrook in Autumn 2023, Jane was encouraged to apply for a place on the Work and Retrain As a Gardener Scheme -WRAGS for short - run by the Working For Gardeners Association (WFGA). She was successful and spent last year (2024) as an apprentice with the Garden of the Year** finalist's team, being mentored by Hole Park's Head Gardener Quentin Stark.

A chance conversation with Quentin about remodelling the Millennium Garden beside the beautiful Georgian mansion - the private residence of Hole Park's owners Edward and Clare Barham - led to Jane being asked to come up with ideas for a new look.

Jane meticulously measured the space, costed materials and thought hard about a suitable new border layout and planting scheme. The resulting plan of cool silver, blue and purple plants in curved borders with framing of the view through a veil of wispy grasses, received an immediate 'yes' from the Barhams.

"I wanted the design to compliment the Terracotta garden on the other side of the house, which is all hot reds and oranges, and create a lovely West-facing evening view for Edward and Clare as well as mark Quentin's 25 years as Head Gardener in 2025. I couldn't believe it when they said that they loved my design and wanted to go ahead with it."

Jane was then asked to stay on at Hole Park, after the end of her training in December 2024, to help bring the project to life, with the final planting being completed this month (May) for visitors to admire.

A design for a historic garden alone would be a dream debut for any aspiring designer, but things didn't stop there. As a result of the project, her WFGA coordinator Alison Hepworth was so impressed that she encouraged Jane to apply to design one of the ten WRAGS-supported show gardens at Gardeners' World Live. The show at the NEC in Birmingham attracts upwards of 90,000 visitors - money-can't-buy exposure for a new designer just building a profile.

The 2025 theme for the ten gardens is Cultivating Connections. Jane's design, which won her a place amongst them, is The Newborn Garden. Unsurprisingly, it is inspired by her experiences as a new mother and by the postnatal anxiety she suffered.

"The garden is designed to be a welcoming and peaceful space for anyone looking after a newborn baby, whether they are mothers, fathers, guardians or carers," said Jane. "From personal experience, I know it can often be stressful and lonely looking after a newborn baby, so I wanted to create a place where people can sit privately but also connect with others in the space if they want to."

Thanks to contact with the Maternal Mental Health Alliance (MMHA), Jane's chosen charity partner for the garden, and her own 'cold calling,' Jane secured sponsorship from maternal healthcare company Lansinoh. Founded 40 years ago by a new mum who struggled with breastfeeding, Lansinoh has grown into one of the UK's favourite motherhood brands with a range of breastfeeding and postnatal support products. The partnership between the MMHA and Lansinoh provided a natural connection, aligning with Jane's mission to champion maternal mental health and wellbeing.

A local nursery, Rapkyns in Heathfield, is loaning her all the plants while Hole Park is providing manpower - Quentin and Deputy Head Gardener Joe Archer will be helping Jane build her garden at the NEC - as well as transport and temporary storage for all the materials.

The centre piece of The Newborn Garden will be a beautiful corten steel bench, specially commissioned from local supplier RJB Steel, which Jane hopes to be able to donate to a local Birmingham maternal support group, hospital maternity unit or community garden when the show finishes.